Handle with Care
by Missmione potter
Summary: It only took one word to get her back, "blackbird." It will take much more to build a future, but it helps if you have strong foundations. Post 200. Eventually JJ/Emily
1. Chapter 1

**I don't own Criminal Minds! Hope you enjoy!**

**Chapter 1 **

_ "I still get nightmares. In fact, I get them so often I should be used to them by now. I'm not. No one ever really gets used to nightmares."_

_-Mark Z. Danielewski_

"Wake up JayJe, it's just a nightmare," he whispered before going back to sleep. The nightmares happened so often he didn't really care anymore, _I have to work in the morning, _he justified, ignoring the crying and whimpering next to him.

On the outside, at work JJ was the epitome of the perfect agent her colleagues didn't have a clue about the demons that haunted her at home. At first Will had been patient and caring, holding her, wiping away tears, kissing her, promising she wasn't in that basement anymore. Of course after three months of taking care of her he'd grown tired and resentful. He resented her and her job thinking that if she had just moved to New Orleans when he'd asked her none of this would've happened.

"You can't go to work Cher," he said pouring milk into Henry's cereal. She barely managed to look up from her cold coffee, "you haven't slept well in months and to be honest last night neither have I. Last night was the worst, you cried for hours."

Her blue eyes narrowed at the southern man, _don't bring this up Will, not in front of Henry, _she tried to convey with just a look. But the little boy had caught on to every word his father had said, JJ found herself staring into a smaller pair of eyes.

"Mama you have nightmares too?" he asked with the innocence only a child could posses.

Will had done this on purpose, "yeah baby, but they're just dreams," she replied leaning over to caress her son's face.

"They aren't just dreams when you've been tortured and almost killed," mumbled the man loud enough for the other occupants of the kitchen to hear.

"Will stop it," she said angrily not wanting to expose her young boys to the horrors of her job. But it was too late, the son was already in tears, "you almost gots killed mommy?"

"Yes Henry you're mother almost died because of her job," replied the detective, feeling particularly vindictive.

JJ couldn't believe Will was doing this. Scaring their son, telling him that she had almost died. "William stop it you're scaring him!" her voice came out louder than expected.

"What Cher? You want me to keep lying to him? He should be scared, there's always the chance you won't come home," the little boy was sobbing now, not understanding that his parents were having an argument, instead focusing on the fact that his mother might not come home tonight.

A mother's instinct is hard to fight, she wanted to punch her husband but her son came first, she needed to comfort Henry and make sure he understood she'd be ok.

"Hey buddy come here," she called, Henry leap in her arms crying loudly.

"Mommy you have to come home and you can't gets killed," he cried.

"Henry honey I need you to calm down," she ran a hand up and t=down his small back, "I will always come home, you know why?"

The little boy shook his head, "I'll always come home because I have you. There aren't bad guys bad enough to keep me away from you."

"Why don't you go play in your room for a little while? I'll take you to work with me and you'll get to see your aunt Pen?" this seemed to cheer him up enough to let go of his mom and run to his room.

JJ took a minute to gather her thoughts and calm her anger, _what the hell was that?_ She asked herself, conscious that her husband was staring at her.

"Well?" he broke the silence.

"Well what Will? What the hell were you thinking? How could you say those things to Henry, are you out of your mind?" she said angrily, barely managing to keep from screaming.

"I didn't tell my boy a single lie, it's time he found out the truth about what you do. I'm done with this; I won't keep feeding the fantasy you've created. And I will not lie to my son," replied the detective, anger coating every word.

"Are you even listening to yourself? Henry is barely four, you're going to traumatize him," her hands shook as she lifted her mug to her lips.

"No Jennifer, the only one that's going to traumatize him is you."

"I don't have time for this, I have to get to work," she said getting up to fetch Henry.

He laughed harshly, "You never have time for this Cher. Well guess what, I don't have time for you anymore, I don't have time to comfort you while you're crying in your sleep, I don't have time! I'm tired and I thought I could handle it, I thought after you got kidnapped you'd realize that I was right, I thought you were gonna change. But it's gotten worse, I don't want this anymore, maybe I could've helped you, maybe if this had happened a while ago? But you know what I'm thinking while you're crying every night?" he asked taking a step closer to her, "I think that you deserve it, you put yourself in that situation and you got what you deserved."

Each one of his words felt like a slap on the face. She'd been trying so hard to mend their relationship, she had for years, but this was the last straw. It made her notice the little things; how he hadn't kissed her in the last two months, how he could hardly look at her in the eye, how she woke up alone every morning.

She wanted to yell back at the man, she wanted to hit him and tell him he was wrong, but he had just voiced her own secret fears, he had stripped her of the little security she felt, of the little hope she had that things would get better, he took it all in under five minutes.

"You know what Will, you're right. Maybe it's better that we move on, separately, maybe it'd better if we end this," she couldn't meet his eyes, she didn't want to. Side stepping the stunned man she went upstairs to collect her son. She could still see Will standing in the kitchen when she left the house and she could still hear his words echoing in her head as she dropped Henry at the daycare. She held herself together until she got to her office, as soon as she closed her door she collapsed, the tears she held back earlier poured down her face, the hurt she swallowed a mere hour ago came back making it hard to breathe.

Her phone started to ring; taking a deep breath she picked up, "Jareau."

"Jay? What's the matter?" asked a very familiar voice.

A sob escaped her lips, "Blackbird," replied the blonde, knowing that Emily didn't need any other explanation. It was their panic word. Both women had agreed that if either one of them uttered the two syllables; it meant they were at their breaking point. Meaning that Emily would be back in the States in the next 24 hours.

"I'll get on the next flight, hang on I'm coming," whispered Emily, knowing that the blonde would only use their code if things became too much. JJ spent the next fifteen minutes trying to compose herself, knowing that it was only a matter of time before one guys came to check on her.

_Emily is coming, _she thought, knowing that the brunette was the only person who could help her make sense of her broke self.

**R&R!**


	2. Chapter 2

**I don't own Criminal Minds! Hope you Enjoy!**

**Chapter 2**

_"__I'm not sure this is a world I belong in anymore. I'm not sure that I want to wake up."_

_-Gayle Forman_

A few seconds after she'd managed to pick herself up the door swung open, "Blondie, conference room, looks like we've got a case," said Morgan, stepping into the dark office. The smile he wore fell when he noticed her appearance, she tried to look away but the tearstains were a dead give away.

"JayJe? What happened?" he asked closing the door, wanting to give the woman as much privacy as he could.

"Nothing, I'm fine," she replied quickly, _I can't tell him._

"It sure looks like something," he said putting a reassuring hand on her shoulder, "I'm always here doll face, if you ever need to talk."

Biting the inside of her cheek she let the kind agent pull her into a hug, it took all her will power to keep the tears away, "I know, thank you."

They indeed had a case, and a nasty one by the look on Garcia's face, "Good morning my league of extraordinary profilers!"

Penelope Garcia had a unique ability to break the tension in a room. All six profilers knew they were seconds away from being immersed in the sick world of a serial killer, yet it only took one Garcia's greetings to ease their minds and remind them of the goodness in the world. As the team filed in the analyst's eyes seemed to linger a little longer on JJ but carried on as usual.

"Wyoming officials contacted us today asking for help. Earlier this morning they found the third body in a string of murders beginning about a month ago," she summoned an image of the latest victim on the screen, "All are female between 19 and 22 years of age. They've all been found on hunting trails in the Bighorns Mountains near Sheridan, Wyoming," said the analyst avoiding the photograph.

"It seems like a few animals got to her," mentioned Rossi getting closer to the screen, "do we know anything about that?"

"The M.E. is working on identifying the bite marks," she started only to be cut short by Reid.

"The Bighorns are home to a wide arrange of carnivorous species anything from bears, mountain lions, coyotes or even grey wolves. Do we know cause of death Garcia?"

"Oh my boy wonder, cause of death is definitely human," she clicked to the next slide, "our victims were stabbed in the chest. The M.E. also found several defensive wounds and ligature marks," replied the colorful woman clearly disturbed by the information.

"Where these women reported missing?" asked Morgan, not looking up from the file on his lap.

"Each one was reported missing exactly ten days before the bodies turned up," she answered shutting off the overhead images.

"Ok wheels up in thirty," instructed the unit chief.

"Before you go, there's a large winter storm moving into the area, pack warm," called Garcia as the team left the conference room.

Agent Jennifer Jareau kept her composure until she reached the sanctuary of her office; quickly she shut the door and let her emotions rake over. She needed to call Will; Henry was at the FBI daycare and needed to be picked up. Looking at the phone screen she saw two voice mails, the first one was from the man that until this morning she called husband; the second message belonged to the one person that could help her.

"Cher, we need to talk. I don't know what came over me this morning, I'm so sorry; please…" she deleted the message. There was nothing her husband could say to right their earlier fight. _"You got what you deserve," _his voice echoed in her mind. It wasn't the first time he'd said something hurtful, she could get over that; it was how he'd looked at her, his eyes held too much honesty for the words not to mean something. The man that was supposed to love her and protect her was hurting her almost as much as Hastings had down in that basement.

Stopping that train of thought she focused on the second message, sparing a smile at Emily's frustrated voice, "Jen, I couldn't get a flight immediately, the next one leaves in three hours, call me when you get this, I'm coming sweetheart just hang on," the blonde woman wiped at her eyes trying to stop the tears. She didn't want to go to Wyoming but she didn't want to go home either.

Today was turning out to be one of those days her therapist warned her about, _too much stress can trigger flashback Jennifer, the day will come and when it does I want you to ask for help, _she could hear Dr Montano. That day long ago, she had assured the doctor she would ask for help; right now, she wasn't sure she could.

Before her brain could process her actions, her fingers had dialed Emily's number, "Jay?"

"Emily," she wanted to break down and tell the brunette everything that had happened, everything that had been happening, but the only word that made it out was her name.

"Are you ok? What happened?"

"We have a case Em, we're going to Wyoming in…" looking down at her watch, "twenty minutes."

"That's fine I'll call Hotch, I'll meet you there. But that's not what I asked you," she said gently.

"I don't know how to answer that," the blonde replied honestly.

"Ok we'll talk when I get there, let me call Hotch," she could imagine the brunette pacing the airport, "promise me you'll be ok until I get there."

"I will be."

"I love you sweetheart, see you tonight," the younger woman nodded in response, hoping that Emily could somehow understand the gesture.

It was now time for the hard call, _Will, _she whispered, "Chere, I'm so glad you called, this…"

A surprised scoff escaped, "Will, not right now. The team has a case; we're leaving right now. You need to pick Henry up from daycare. I'll call tonight to talk to him," he didn't deserve her kindness right now, she wouldn't even be talking to him if it hadn't been for her son.

"What? Are you serious, I wanted to talk to you tonight. At least we can agree that there's lots to talk about in order to fix this relationship," he replied clearly upset at her.

"Will, I think we both need sometime to think about our marriage, we'll talk when I get back," she hung up before he could answer. Yes this was exactly what she needed a seven and a half hour flight to think. _I can't go back to him, _she thought, knowing that their separation was imminent.

Placing the last of her winter wear in the go bag she zipped it and headed for the bull pen, surprised to see her boss waiting for her.

"JayJe there's something we need to discuss," he said starting the engine of his car, "I just received a call from Emily."

After a moment of silence she replied, "I know."

"We'll have to jump through some bureaucratic hoops but we'll get her to assist I this case," his voice took on a gentler tone, "We're all here for you, but if it's Emily you need we'll make sure you have her. There's no need to hide anything JayJe, we're a family, the entire team. And if you struggle before she's here, know that you can come to us, anyone of us."

**R&R!**


	3. Chapter 3

**I don't own Criminal Minds! Hope you enjoy!**

**Chapter 3**

"Baby girl, what do the victims have in common?" asked Morgan taking a seat next to JJ.

"With the population size being this small their lives overlap constantly, same grocery store, same gym, hell even same starbucks," replied Garcia through the web cam, "they are all blonde, young and beautiful. All are involved in various volunteer groups, they're just good small town girls. I'm sorry my chocolate god, I'll keep checking but right now I have nothing."

"It says here that the first victim, Sarah was reported missing after working the night shift at a restaurant," said Rossi.

"Ok, the second victim was last seen at a local bar," added JJ.

"Third victim was supposed have breakfast with her parents and never showed up," continued the bald man.

"All women disappeared at night, sometime between 11pm and 8am," mentioned Reid taking notes, "all vehicles have been recovered near the dump sites, forensics are still processing them."

"First thing tomorrow morning I want JJ and Morgan to go the last dump site, see what you can find out. I think it's safe to assume that the murder weapon was some kind of blade, stabbing to the heart implies a personal motive," concluded the unit chief, going through the crime pictures. One in particular catching his eye, "the bodies were dumped and posed," he said looking at the photo of a young girl wearing a summer dress, laying on the mud with her arms gently crossed over her chest, covering the stab wound.

"That's remorse Hotch," mumbled JJ.

"Well a swift stab to chest means they died quickly and with minimal pain also the posing of the bodies means the killer felt remorse for his victims, that doesn't fit with the kidnapping and the violence of their captivities, could we be looking at a team?" questioned the newest member of the team. Alex was still finding her footing in the close-knit unit; she found it helpful to watch their interactions before voicing her thoughts.

"Maybe," said Hotch somewhat lost in his thoughts, "We won't be able to do much, get some rest and tomorrow we'll hit the ground running."

His mind had moved on from the case, instead he focused on telling the team about Emily. As acting Director he had the final say in the decision, it really hadn't been hard to convince his superiors, nothing was ever hard when you started throwing the name Prentiss around.

Further down the plane JJ sat motionless staring out the window, her phone vibrated for probably the tenth time signaling another text Will. She didn't want to look at them, she didn't want to think about him; all she wanted to do was crawl under a blanket and sleep.

The last few months had been exhausting both physically and emotionally. She'd managed to convince everyone she was doing well, she was handling the Hastings fiasco, she was getting better. When in reality she was falling apart. There wasn't a single night in the last one hundred and six days where she had slept soundly. Nightmares took over her sleep, making her relive her torture. But not only that, she was reliving her time in Afghanistan; the explosion, the miscarriage, the soldiers that died following her commands.

Everything she had failed to process haunted her, and it was becoming too much to handle. Will obviously couldn't cope with her; Henry had even caught her crying a few times. There was no place where she could just let go and feel. Her days blended together, the cases affected her more than they should. It was a miracle that she'd been able to keep this to herself, especially when she worked with some of the best profilers in the world. _They want to believe everything's fine, they only see what I want them to see. _

Emily wasn't like that; _she always saw what I wanted to keep hidden._ It was for that reason that JJ felt so nervous about having the brunette back; she'd even toyed with the idea of calling the older woman to tell her not to come. But she also knew that she needed her best friend, she needed her unconditional support, she needed to be able to break down, she needed someone who understood. Also with Hotch in the loop JJ couldn't hide anymore.

A particular memory came to mind, the day after the team rescued her from Hastings. She'd gone to the airport to see Emily off, causing a huge argument with her husband. But at the time she felt an urgent need to be with the brunette as long as possible.

_Typical Emily, sitting at the fanciest bar in the airport casually sipping a clear beverage; the brunette didn't notice JJ's presence until the younger agent took the seat next to her._

_"__Jay? What are you doing here?" asked Emily._

_"__I came to see you off," replied the blonde, taking a sip from Emily's glass, "I wanted to thank you Em, for everything."_

_Emily's brown eyes softened, "you have nothing to thank me for, you know I'll always be there. We're family," she said gently._

_"__Still, thank you," she let her hand cover the brunette's, "I'm gonna miss you."_

_At this last statement the Interpol agent sat up a little straighter, "you know Jay, it's not over. It's going to take a long time before you're ok with all this," she gestured with her hands._

_"__I'll be fine Em, you guys saved me," answered the blonde._

_"__Yes sweetheart, right now you are. But when your mind begins to process you might not feel this way," JJ knew that, she knew that it was a matter of time before she broke down._

_"__Are you sure you can't stay?" she asked avoiding the topic._

_"__I have to get back, but let's make a deal," the older woman hated the idea of leaving, but she had a job to do, a job she had put on pause when she'd found out JJ was missing._

_"__I'm talking from experience when I tell you these things, after Doyle I was a mess, I don't want you to go through what I did alone. This will be a way for you to tell me if you're not ok. If a time ever comes when you feel that everything is too much, that the memory of what happened is taking over your life I want you to call me. I promise you I'll be on the first flight back and we'll work through it together," Emily finished the last of her drink, never once looking away from JJ's blue orbs._

_"__And if that time comes Em? And I call you what do I say?" she asked quietly._

_"__I hope you never have to Jen, but if you do," she paused searching for the right word, "just say 'blackbird.'"_

The two women hadn't talked about that particular moment again. It became a silent understanding between them, and although at that time JJ doubted she'd ever have to use the code word, she was glad they had it. It'd been her safety net these last few months, as had been Emily's weekly phone calls.

The slight vibration of her phone pulled her from her thoughts, looking at the screen expecting to see "Will" written on the screen, she was surprised when she saw the text had come from Hotch.

_"__We need to tell them that Emily's on her way."_

She knew she'd have to, but telling the team about Emily also meant that she might have to divulge some of her internal turmoil. _Not right now, _she thought before sending a quick reply back to her boss.

_"__I will, before we land."_

**R&R!**


	4. Chapter 4

**I don't own Criminal Minds! Hope you enjoy!**

**Chapter 4**

_"__Like a word on a page that you've printed and read a million times, that suddenly looks strange or wrong, foreign. And you feel scared for a second, like you've lost something, even if you're not sure what it is."_

_-Sarah Dessen_

"We'll be landing in ten minutes," announced JJ reclaiming her seat next to Morgan. As she took a sip of her coffee she managed to skillfully avoid Hotch's attempt at getting her attention. She knew she needed to tell them, but she wasn't quiet ready for the team to find out the secret she'd been hiding for such a long time.

_It's now or never, _she thought, "There's something else I need to tell you," her voice taking on a softer tone. No one said anything waiting for her to continue.

"Emily is going to be joining us in this case," _like a band-aid, just rip it off._

"What? Emily is coming?" asked Morgan excited at the idea of seeing his partner.

"She'll meet us in Wyoming later tonight," she looked up at Hotch, silently asking for help.

When he didn't come to her aid, she bit the bullet and continued, "I was having a tough time this morning, well I guess I've been having a hard time for a while now, the whole Hastings thing," she stopped to collect herself, "I'm sorry I didn't say anything to you, I thought I could deal with it on my own. But then Will this morning, something broke and before I knew it Emily was on the phone and now she's on a plane. Things just slipped out of my hands and I…" her emotions taking over as she tried to fight back the tears.

"Hey, hey, hey, don't do JayJe. Don't hide from us anymore," whispered Morgan, "there's no shame in admitting this, and if we get to see Emily on top I'm happy. I just wish I'd been able to see it, to be there for you sooner."

The team stayed silent for a few minutes, absorbing this new piece of information. All of them were happy to see Emily, but they weren't pleased that the reason was JJ's wellbeing.

For all that Reid knew he was at a loss in this situation, he had no words, his mind flashing back to his own captivity. He knew that no words could ease JJ's struggle. Back when it'd been him in her place he'd crave physical contact, so he reached across the table and took her hand, trying to pour as much love as he could in that one gentle squeeze.

Rossi, stood on the sidelines, he'd been watching the younger woman for a while now. He'd been the only one that noticed the pain she tried to hide behind her perfected mask of happiness. He'd been waiting for the other shoe to drop, no matter how good you were at compartmentalizing, what had happened to JJ was serious, things like that leave a mark.

It didn't matter how long she'd been a part of the team, it was moments like these that made Alex feel like an outsider. The other members of the team were too close; they could read each other too well. They'd perfected the art of communicating without even speaking. And no matter how much they tried to include her, there was too much history. She didn't resent them for this; on the contrary she was fascinated by their dynamic. It was then, taking another glance at the blonde woman that she noticed how tired she seemed; she noticed how JJ seemed to have lost some weight. The haunted look in JJ's blue eyes would be an image that would stay with the linguist for a very long time.

"Ok, enough of this," said the blonde, pulling her hand away from Reid, "I'll be fine, let's focus on this case."

_She's embarrassed, _thought the unit chief, noticing how the rest of the team picked up on her emotions. Reid began putting away his chess pieces, Morgan fidgeted with his cell phone, Alex went back to her book, everyone was giving JJ some space, knowing what it must have taken to admit what'd been happening. Sharing a meaningful look with Dave he spoke up, "It'll be close to 11pm when we land, get some rest tonight, I want you all on your game for tomorrow."

The Sheriff personally greeted them as the piled into the tiny Sheridan airport, "Good evening, thank you for coming," said the man, sporting the cliché cowboy hat, boots and large belt buckle, "I'm Sheriff Randy Kinney, this is Deputy Parmer," he pointed at the man standing next to him.

JJ seamlessly slipped into her old role of media liaison taking the Sheriff's outstretched hand, "How do you do, I'm SSA Jennifer Jareau, here are SSA's Morgan, Rossi, Blake, Dr Reid and SSA Hotchner."

"It's a little late how bout we take you to the hotel and we'll meet at the station in the morning. I've got you a few all-terrain vehicles secured, follow me," said the Sheriff heading out.

-o-

_I need a shower, _it had been a long day, and being on a plane for over six hours didn't help the matters. She looked over at the alarm clock on the night table and tried to do the time difference math in her head, _gotta call Henry._

Quickly dialing the familiar number she waited a few seconds before Will picked up, "Will, it's me. Can I talk to Henry?"

"He doesn't want to talk to you," he answered, clearly still upset.

"Will, don't do this, not now. Please put my son on the phone," she said getting a little tired of his attitude.

"His movie will be over in ten minutes, how about you and I talk until then?" JJ wanted to avoid this confrontation, Will was still upset and so was she.

"I don't want to fight, I'll call back in ten minutes," she said quickly.

"On no Cher, we're going to talk until Henry is ready to talk to you, that is if you still would like to be able to speak to him tonight," he threatened, making JJ worry about a future custody battle.

"What do you want to talk about?" she played dumb.

"Well about this morning Cher, what happened in the kitchen," his demeanor changed, "I didn't mean any of those things I said, I do love you and I want to take care of you."

"Ok Will, don't you think this is conversation we should be having in person?" she asked.

"…and I know you didn't mean the things you said either, we're a family babe, we stick together," he continued ignoring her.

"Will listen to me," she said forcefully, "don't assume things on my behalf, I did mean the things I said this morning, and I think you did too. I need sometime to figure this out. We haven't been happy for a while now, I don't think I want this anymore Will. It's not fair to Henry to see his parents like this," she continued honestly.

"No Jennifer, what isn't fair to Henry is you breaking up his family. Don't you think I deserve to be mad after all the shit I've put up with since you decided to go and get kidnapped?" the 'real' Will made an appearance.

She was getting tired of this argument, he was hurting her and she was letting him, "I'm done talking to you, please put Henry on so I can say goodnight."

She heard a frustrated huff before Henry's sweet voice greeted her, "Hi mommy, you chasing bad guys?"

"Hey baby, yeah I'm chasing bad guys," she felt a large lump growing in her throat, "I love you."

"I love you too, daddy tolds me to tell you not to gets killed. Mommy you be careful, don't let bad guys hurt you. Goodnight mommy, daddy says it's bedtime," he had gone through several emotions in the two minutes they talked.

"I love you too," she whispered back to the silent phone.

Now she was almost certain that things with Will were over, he'd once again used their son to get to her. _How could he do that? _ Her mind questioned over and over. Had he always been like this or was it the kidnapping that changed him, _it changed me._ She ventured a look at the time; bright red numbers stared back, telling her that it was much too late to be awake. Quickly she took a shower and crawled into bed, hoping that just for tonight the nightmares would stay away.

It wasn't until much later that her mind betrayed her. She was back in that damp basement, electric shocks going through her ribs. She could hear herself crying but she could also feel a soft hand caressing her forehead.

"Wake up sweetheart, it's just a dream," whispered a familiar voice.

"Stop, please stop," cried JJ to her imaginary assailant. When the attack had happened the first time she hadn't yelled or cried, she'd kept her composure, maintained a leveled head even with the torture. In her dreams everything intensified, the fear, the pain. But what consumed her was the absolute desperation that flooded her body.

"Jay, come back," she felt soft lips pressed against her temple.

"Emily, please," begged the sleeping woman, too far gone to realize she was dreaming.

"I'm right here, Jennifer you need to wake up," the voice was now a little firmer.

Just as her nightly torment started, it ended. JJ sat up in her hotel bed, sweat dripping out of every pore, salty tears cascading down her face. She couldn't breathe, she couldn't stop crying. The dream had left her hypersensitive to everything. The sheet she clung to felt rough, the air was too cold, her body hummed with adrenaline, making her skin hot to the touch.

Her heart raced once again when she felt a pair of strong arms pulling her close to a body, a body that hadn't been there when she fell asleep. At first she fought against it, but in her weakened state she was easily to subdued by the massive hug. Every now and then she'd gasp for air as the sobs kept on coming. There was no notion of time or space as she finally gave into the comfort and held onto the person holding her.

It felt familiar and different at the same time. It was definitely a woman holding her, it couldn't be Alex, and Garcia had stayed back in Quantico.

"Emily," she breathed out, her foggy mind connecting the dots.

"Shhhh Jay, I'm here, shhhh," replied the brunette, holding her a little tighter, "sleep, we'll talk tomorrow. I'll be right here."

With that promise JJ was able to drift back to sleep, finding comfort in Emily's voice. Tomorrow they could talk and dissect what she was feeling, right now she just needed the support only Emily could provide.

**R&R!**


	5. Chapter 5

**I don't own Criminal Minds! Hope you enjoy!**

**Chapter 5**

_"__Home is where you go to find solace from the ever changing chaos, to find love within the confines of a heartless world, and to be reminded that no matter how far you wander, there will always be something waiting when you return."_

_-Kendal Rob_

_Thum, Thump, Thump…_

"What the hell," her eyes snapped open and looked around the room; _it's only 6 am_.

_Thump, thump, thump_

"I'm coming, I'm coming" she grumbled, peeling the blankets off, unwillingly leaving the warm body next to hers. After a quick look through the peephole she threw the door open. Standing before her was Agent Derek Morgan holding two cups of coffee.

She was glad to see him, but not glad enough to forgive the six o'clock wake up call, "Morgan, Hotch said we didn't have to meet until eight," trying her best to stayed annoyed at the now smiling man.

"Princess!" he said, pulling the sleepy brunette into a hug, "Man, it's good to see you, when did you get here?"

"Oh about three hours ago," she replied hugging him back, she'd missed this; she'd missed the team. It'd been why she hadn't visited; it would've been too easy just to stay.

"Now are you gonna tell me why you're here so early?" she asked grabbing the coffees.

"The Sheriff called, said something about a storm moving into the area later today. He wants us to look at the dumpsite before the snow destroys all evidence. JayJe was supposed to come with me," Emily frowned in concern at the mention of the other agent, "she ok?" he asked.

"Yeah, she will be, we had a rough night," answered Emily, "let me get her up, we'll meet you downstairs in a few minutes."

He nodded, giving her on last playful slap on the shoulder, he said, "it's good to have you back Princess, I've missed you."

_I've missed you guys too, _she said to herself closing the door. A smile still planted firmly on her face. The sight of a sleeping JJ managed to sober her up almost immediately, _why didn't you call me sooner?_

"Jay, sweetheart? It's time to wake up," she whispered walking closer to the sleeping woman. Delicately running a hand through blonde hair, savoring the closeness, _I'm sorry I missed all this, I should've known_. The younger woman jumped awake at Emily's touch, clearly scared.

"Hey, you're ok, it's just me," Emily soothed, her hand didn't move away.

"Emily?" JJ asked, "When did you get here?"

"I've been here for a bit, I got in when you were having a nightmare," she vividly remembered how the blonde had cried in her sleep, "why didn't you tell me they've gotten so bad?"

_Oh right, she was here when you were crying, she had to wake you up, _JJ looked down at her hands, _this is why you called her back, someone had to see how bad it's been, _"I don't know, I didn't think they were so bad, I thought it was normal."

The older woman leaned closer, pressing her lips lightly over JJ's furrowed brow, "just know you're not alone anymore, I'll be here for as long as it takes."

JJ leaned into the other woman, soaking in the human contact. It'd been so long since someone comforted her, "thank you Em, for coming, for being here," she tried to keep her voice steady.

"Don't thank me yet, we still have lots to talk about. But right now we have to get moving. I told Morgan we'd meet him downstairs," she said not moving away from the blonde, "a storm is coming, dress warm."

Both women moved in synchrony as they got dress, falling into the same routine they had when Emily worked at the BAU.

Down stairs Emily was received with open arms and kind words. The team was surprised to see her but understood the meaning behind her sudden return.

"It's good to have you back Emily," said Reid.

"How long do we have you Bella?" asked Rossi.

Emily directed her eyes towards the blonde standing next to her, "I don't know yet, as long as it takes."

"We can talk some more tonight," interrupted the unit chief, "there's a storm coming and we need to get to the dumpsite before all evidence is erased. JJ, Morgan, Prentiss, head out there now, Sheriff Kinney is waiting outside. Reid, Alex go to the station and start on victimology. Dave and I will go to the last victim's house to interview the parents. Also because of the recent development with the weather, I'm having Garcia join us here. The areas we'll be covering have very limited reception."

The team dynamic didn't seem affected by the new arrival. They were like a well-oiled machine, on task, focused, ready to bring this serial killer to justice.

Emily felt a gentle touch on her shoulder as she headed outside, "Agent Prentiss, I believe you might want to have these back however temporary your stay might be," she took her badge and gun from Hotch's hand.

"Thanks," she replied but the man had already left.

-o-

The wind whipped around them, pushing cold air down to their bones. It didn't cease, it didn't stop, the wind seemed endless, so cold it burned; the two hours they'd spent going over the dumpsite had been brutal. Pulling her coat tighter around her thin frame JJ continued to examine the scene before her, finding little of interest.

"The body was found right over yonder," said the Sheriff pointing at a little patch of dirt, "The M.E. is examining it as we speak. There was no murder weapon found, not a single drop of blood anywhere, you can see why I called y'all."

Morgan was leaning over the area where the body had been found, "the site is clean, and whoever did this knew what they were doing."

Emily hung in the back, not really sure what her role was, certainly not comfortable enough to give any input. But being a profiler wasn't something you could turn off. Her mind acted on it's own accord, scanning the area, observing everything and everyone for suspicious behavior. It had been her that noticed the ATV approaching a ways away. The howling of the wind masked the loud motor.

"Morgan, we got company," she said making her way to JJ, standing in front of the younger agent, "he's armed."

The man had a black .20 gauge shotgun hanging off his shoulder, his face was dirty, his clothes were covered in old bloodstains. Morgan had his finger hovering over the trigger, a breath away from shooting. Just as all hell was about to get loose the vehicle stopped, about fifty yards from the agents, "what the hell are you pointing those at me for?" yelled the new arrival, "as far as I know it's still legal to hunt."

"Roy Speer," greeted the Sheriff with a sneer, "take off the gun and get over here. We've got crime scene, you're mucking it up." Roy stumbled trying to stand straight; he was a tall man with dark hair, even through the many layers of cameo covering his body the agents could tell he was well built.

The four guns pointed at him didn't waver or move until he was standing in front of the Sheriff, "Son a gun, don't tell me you've been drinkin?" it wasn't a necessary question, the man smelled like a distillery.

"Just shot me a lion, had to celebrate Sheriff. Gutted him about half a mile from here," he pointed at the mountain lion carcass sitting in the back of his vehicle, "What's this you saying about a crime scene? Did someone shoot themselves?" he asked the alcohol slurring his words.

"A girl got murdered, you know anything about that?" asked Morgan stepping into to interrogate the man, something about Roy Speer didn't seem right.

"Nah, I've been up here for a week, my campsite was a little ways that way," he pointed past the dumpsite, "no one's been up here except me, at least not that I know."

"Would you mind coming down to the station and giving us a statement?" asked the blonde woman. Stepping next to the other agents, a little annoyed at Emily, _I can still shoot a gun; I don't need them protecting me._

Roy didn't like the implication, "Who the hell are these people Randy?"

"They're with the FBI, I called them to help us with the recent murders," replied the Sheriff.

"Fucking feds? Sorry sweetheart I ain't going anywhere with y'all," he looked at her in disgust, "but I do got to get going, a storm is moving in, looks like a bad one."

The man left, chunks of dirt flying in their direction as he sped off "Whose that?" asked Emily.

"That's Roy Speer, widowed, has a daughter Riley, sweet girl. He's a drunk and can't seem to be able to stay out of trouble. If you ask me he's on my top list of suspects," replied the older man, still looking at where Roy had disappeared.

"Something's off about him," mumbled Morgan.

"Been saying that for years," replied the Sheriff leaning against his pick up, "but he's never done more than a few drunken fights and such."

The Sheriff noticed JJ pulling out her cell phone, "there's no cell reception up here, and if your lot's done I reckon we should head back to town, Roy's right there's a storm heading our way."

**R&R!**


	6. Chapter 6

**I don't own Criminal Minds! Hope you enjoy!**

**Chapter 6**

_"__Clouds, leaves, soil, and wind all offer themselves as signals of changes in the weather. However, not all the storms of life can be predicted."_

_-David Petersen_

A light powdery snow coated the roughed landscape, the temperatures were dropping quickly, the wind was picking up and JJ was glad that they weren't on the mountain anymore.

She watched how the SUV drove pass the snow-covered trees, and how the wind blew the snow as if it were sand; it had a soothing effect managing to gently lull her asleep. It had been a long time since she'd truly rested. For the last three months her nights had been plagued by violent nightmares, reliving the worst moments of her life.

"C'mere, Jay take a nap, I'll wake you up when we get there," said the brunette pulling the younger agent to rest on her lap. Emily was at a loss; she couldn't comprehend how things had gotten so bad so fast. She was a little upset at the rest of team, how could they not have noticed, _they're profilers for god's sake._ Why did things have to get so out control?

JJ had been her lifeline during her time in Paris; the young woman in her arms had grounded her, kept her in touch with reality. _It's my turn, I'll take care of you now, _she promised silently.

JJ's peaceful slumber was abruptly ended by Sherriff Kinney slamming on the breaks, "damn deer, they're like the plague," he said avoiding a second one. The blonde woman reached for whatever she could grab, her brain still trying to wake up.

"Hey, you're ok," whispered Emily pulling her back down. She caught a glimpse of a single large house standing in the distance before giving into sleep for a second time.

By the time they reached the station they were all ready to go, "ladies, let's see what they got," said Morgan before pulling open the glass doors to the station.

"Hey, did you guys find anything?" asked Alex, handing them all steaming cups of coffee.

"Nothing, the dumpsite was clean," replied JJ, following Agent Blake into their make shift operations center, "whoever did this, didn't leave anything behind."

"Ok, boy wonder what have we got?" asked Morgan ruffling Reid's hair.

"First victim Sarah Peterson, 21 years old. She was working to pay her way through college. Parents are both local, married. The ME found ligature marks on both her hands and feet. She was starved and severely dehydrated. Time of death is just a few hours before they found the body. She had several injuries concurrent to torture, all her fingers were crushed and the bite marks happened premortem, we're still trying to identify animal. There are signs of sexual assault, but no trace evidence was found," said Reid reading the information he'd written on a dry erase board.

Picking up where he left off, Alex continued, "Second victim, Maddy Wallop 22 years old, she was here visiting from college, according to eye witness reports she was drinking pretty heavily on the night she disappeared. Same MO as the first victim, once again ME puts time of death a few hours before the body was discovered."

"Who called them in?" asked Hotch.

"Local hunters," replied the Sheriff "the trails are located in very remote areas, not easily accessible to the other folks."

"Hold on, Roy Speer said no one had been up by where the third body was found," mentioned JJ noticing the discrepancy.

"Roy Speer?" asked Rossi.

"We ran into a him up by the dumpsite. He's a hunter, says he's been up in that area for a week. He reeked of alcohol, I don't know, something seemed off about him. We should bring him in for questioning or at least to get an official statement. Very quick to anger and wasn't happy about the FBI being here," said Morgan leaning against a wall.

"I'll send a deputy to his house," replied the Sheriff leaving the room.

"What about the third victim?" asked Emily, "did the ME send the report yet?"

"Leah Osborne, 20 years old. Has a house a few miles out of town, was supposed to meet her parents for Sunday breakfast, never showed up. The mother called it in as a missing person. The body was found ten days later by a hiker, same MO as the last two victims," replied the unit chief, placing Leah's picture on the board.

"There are two different MO's," stated Emily, "I think we're possibly looking at two unsubs, one that tortures and one that kills and poses the bodies."

"Why do you say that Princess?" asked Morgan.

"Well, while the women are in captivity they're tortured, the unsub doing this feels no remorse, he starves them, breaks their bones and rapes them. Now, the stabbing on the other hand is precise, almost clinical, it's what you do to put someone out of their misery, death is quick, they bleed out in just minutes. The second unsub has an emotional connection and he feels remorse, he cleans and poses the bodies. These girls weren't random kills they are chosen because they fit a particular type. A type that appeals to both partners," she replied thinking out loud.

"Then we have better chances to get in through the submissive partner, we have to appeal to his humanity however small, it's there," said Rossi.

"What about the bite marks? All three bodies have them, we have to assume they're part of the torture," added agent Blake.

"Should I put together a press conference Hotch?" asked JJ already writing down the needed information.

"Yes we need to get it out before the evening news. We are looking for two extremely dangerous and motivated individuals, and until we can find the connection between these women, everyone is in danger," said Hotch. _JJ fits the profile, _he thought knowing that he wasn't the only to notice that fact.

"Garcia should be arriving soon, she might be able to helps us figure out the common link, Morgan I want you to pick her up. It's going to be a long night, keep looking, we're missing something," he finished, heading out to find the Sheriff.

"Wow Princess, you've still got game," said Morgan, putting his arm around the brunette.

"You know Derek, that this what I do for a living. What'd you think? That I sit around reading books and drinking wine?" she said playfully.

All the agents shared a few laughs before focusing on the case. It was stressful day, they had nothing, no leads, no ideas, not even a list of suspects. In cases like this their most important leads usually came when another body turned up or a victim went missing. Every agent in the room was aware of this fact and silently pray that neither scenario would happen.

It was a room full of somber agents that greeted the Sheriff a mere hour later; he cleared his throat making his presence known. Standing next to him was a tall blonde woman dressed in obviously expensive clothing. On one hand she had a basket and on the other she held the leather leashes to two large malamutes.

"Agents, this is Mrs. Cami Davis," he nodded to the woman.

"Oh Randy, I can introduce myself, here won't you take this basket and put on that table," she pointed at the conference table, "Like our dear Sheriff said, I'm Cami, Randy told me the FBI was coming and I just had to come and make sure you were being treated right."

"Ma'am, I'm SSA Derek Morgan, here are SSA's Jennifer Jareau, David Rossi, Emily Prentiss, Alex Blake and Dr. Reid," they all shook hands and exchanged pleasantries.

"I brought you some good coffee and treats, I know the station's coffee is just a little better that warm mud," she said pulling things out of the basket. Her sudden movement startling one of the dogs, making him bark loudly.

JJ was already weary of the animals, her track record with dogs wasn't the best and in her current emotional state everything seemed so much worse. At the sound of the bark she jumped, immediately grabbing onto Emily's arm. The brunette turned to look at her, finding nothing but fear etched in the young agent's face. She put a comforting hand over JJ's; reassuring her everything would be ok.

Emily had been so focused on JJ that she'd almost missed the casual dinner invitation Mrs. Davis extended, "Yes, you must come over. Let me show you true Wyoming hospitality," the woman continued, "I'll have dinner ready by seven, Randy can give you directions to my home." Before the agents could even think of a reply she was gone, dragging two barking dogs behind her.

"Who was that?" asked Rossi.

"That right there is a force of nature, Mrs. Cami Davis, she married into an old family, seems to have taken it on herself to be Sheridan's welcoming committee. The lady means well and knows just about everyone in the county, might do you well to take her up on her dinner invitation. Meet old Leroy Davis, he is probably the richest man in the state, lots of sway over the folks in town," said the Sheriff helping himself to a "good" cup of coffee before leaving the agents.

"I don't know, we still have a lot to go through," said Reid, ever the hesitant one, never comfortable in social settings.

"Either way we have to talk it over with Hotch," said Rossi, intrigued by the new character.

"She reminds me of some of the ambassador's friends," commented Emily, "she's new money in an old town," she said, filing the incident away as one of the most bizarre ones.

"What was that?" asked Hotch, giving the treats an appreciative glance.

"Cami Davis, she just invited us over to her home for dinner," mentioned Morgan, "she's married to an old influential family. The Sheriff seems to think that's in our best interest to attend."

Before the unit chief could reply, Rossi commented, "I'm with the Sheriff on this one, call it sixth sense, a hunch, or whatever you want, but I can almost guarantee that if she isn't connected to the murders, she knows the people that are."

Agent Aaron Hotchner had learned to rely on his team; their opinions and insights were invaluable, especially if the insight came from David Rossi. The Italian man was almost always right, his hunches having helped close more than a few cases.

Right now their own case was at a standstill, and any information the Davis' could provide would be welcomed, "Ok we go, but treat this as an interrogation, a gentler interrogation. This isn't a night off; we're still on the job. If Rossi is correct there will be signs in the house and in the conversation."

"Roy's here," called a deputy, interrupting the conversation, "I'll put him in an interrogation room."

"Rossi, Blake see if you can get anything out of him, remember he's not an official suspect," Hotch said ushering the others to the viewing room.

"If he is one of our unsubs he won't say anything," mention JJ.

"He'd be unsub A, the dominant partner," said Reid.

Whatever else had been said was lost on the blonde agent as her phone vibrated in her pocket, _dad,_ she read looking at the caller id.

"Hotch, I'm sorry but do you mind?" she asked showing him the ringing phone.

"No, go ahead JayJe," he said softly cutting her some slack.

"Thanks," she managed to catch a glimpse of a very anger Roy Speer yelling at Rossi before she disappeared through the door.

"Daddy?" she answered a little surprised he'd called.

_"__Jenny!"_

"I'm fine dad, but I'm on a case, I really should get back. How is mom?" she asked wondering why he'd be calling her.

_"__She's fine pumpkin. I'm calling because I received a strange call from Will a bit ago. He said you two had a argument of some sorts and that you've left him?"_

Until yesterday she wouldn't have believed Will would've done something like this, "no dad, you've got it all wrong. Will said somethings and it made me realize that things haven't been right for a while. I was having some trouble with a couple things but Emily's here; she's going to help me. I really can't get into it right now. I'm working, I'll call you when I get back to DC."

_"__I hope so Jenny, it should really be your husband helping you not Emily, think about your family before you make any decisions."_

"Yeah I know, say hi to mom for me," she said.

_"__Remember Jenny you'll always be my little girl, I love you."_

She ended call without a goodbye, "Hey thought you might want your coat," said a voice. Behind her was Emily, all bundled up holding a coat out to her.

"I didn't even realize I was outside," JJ confessed, she gratefully took the garment, and for the first time noticed how cold she really was.

"Yeah, I figured," replied the brunette, "we'll talk tonight sweetheart."

They stayed outside for a little longer, JJ searching for the right words, Emily looking for a way to broach the subject, _I'll tell her tonight, _thought the blonde.

"Did they get anything from Speer?" she asked, wanting to ease the tension.

"The only thing we manage to do was to piss him off. He did admit to owning a knife that fits the dimensions of the murder weapon. But we're in Wyoming, everyone owns a hunting knife," replied the brunette chuckling at her own joke.

"Let's go back inside, before we freeze," she said pulling on Emily's hand. The snow was coming down fast, there was probably an inch already accumulated on the ground.

Entering the station, they were surprised to find that the previously quiet office was now a picture of chaos. Even the receptionist that had been dozing off earlier wore a panicked look.

"Morgan, what happened?" asked Emily seeing the bald man approaching them.

"We just got a call, a fourth girl's gone missing. She fits the type," he answered, heading outside, "I gotta go get Garcia, Hotch asked me to come find you."

Both women picked up their pace, and headed towards the conference room, "What have we got Hotch?" asked JJ, missing the meaningful look exchanged between him and Emily.

"Another girl's gone missing, Jessica Hackman, her father called it in saying she never came home last night," he said quickly, "Reid and I are heading to the father's house for a statement."

"I guess that means we're not going to the Davis' tonight," murmured Emily, secretly thankful.

"Yes we are, if there's anything information that woman might have, we need to find know, we're also keeping Speer overnight for questioning," he replied.

"He's talking," said Blake peeking her head in the room, "he said he knows the girls, they went to elementary school with his daughter."

"Good work, as soon as Garcia gets here start working that angle, sees if there are any others we might be able to warn. Until then work on putting together a workable profile that we can give to the media," he said following the linguist to the interrogation room.

"Reid are you done with the geographical profile?" asked JJ getting down to business. The busier she stayed the less she thought about Will. Unfortunately that wasn't the only concern she had, the more time she spent reading over files and looking at pictures, the more she identified with the victims, it'd only been three months since her own kidnapping and torture, "we need to find Jessica," she said, emotion coating every word.

While the logical part of Emily's brain worried about the missing her, her heart ached for her friend. _You don't have to be so strong, Jay, _she thought watching the blonde work. Feelings she had suppressed so long ago momentarily resurfaced as she felt an urge to hug JJ, _you gave up on that a long time ago Emily, leave the past where it is. _She tried to listen to her mind, but the need to touch the younger agent was too much, and as soon as she took her seat next to the blonde, her hand sought JJ's and she held on not wanting to ever let go.

JJ didn't even look away from her work when she felt Emily's delicate fingers wrap around her own. It was comforting, it felt right. She'd notice the brunette staring at her through out the day, but that wasn't something new, Emily's always done that. She'd always watched over the blonde, making sure she's ok, making sure she's happy; this was no different. Except now she craved the older woman's touch.

**R&R!**


End file.
